Audrey Rozinsky, head judge at the balance beam, motioned athletes to take their turn by waving a balloon and cloth-covered coat hanger overhead.

She smiled broadly as each competitor swirled and flipped on the 4-inch-wide beam and tapped her toes to the music being played for the floor routines.

Rozinsky was one of many volunteers and staff members contributing to the success of the annual Stars & Stripes Gymnastics Invitational, held over three days at the Bayfront Convention Center in mid-January.

What began as a way to honor first responders to the Sept. 11 attacks has grown to an event featuring 40 teams and more than 1,400 athletes from Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York.

This year's meet featured male athletes for the first time.

While gymnasts performed for crowds seated in the bleachers, many more warmed up behind the enormous U.S. flag hung from the ceiling, waiting to put years of practice into routines lasting less than a minute.

Afterward, Deanna Heasley-Su, 47, described the efforts of her daughter Lienne, 12, and her Team Lightning teammates. "They had the meet of their lives. The competition here is fierce."